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Editorial: Trump's ban on rapid-fire bump stocks is a good first step

The Register's editorial
Published 3:12 p.m. CT Jan. 2, 2019

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The gunman in the Oct. 1, 2018 mass shooting in Las Vegas used 'bump stocks' -- devices to mimic automatic fire. In the aftermath, there were calls to make bump stocks illegal, but only 10 states and three cities have enacted bans. (Sept. 26)
AP

Congress should follow the president's lead and make the change permanent as part of larger gun control reform legislation

A bump stock is seen to a disassembled .22-caliber rifle at North Raleigh Guns in Raleigh, N.C. (Photo: Allen Breed, AP)

The Trump administration deserves credit for doing what Congress has failed to do: Ban rapid-fire bump stocks. These simple devices attach to semiautomatic rifles to increase the firing speed, essentially turning the gun into a fully automatic weapon.

Bump stocks gained public attention after they were used by a Las Vegas shooter in October 2017 to spray more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition into a crowd of concertgoers. He killed 58 people and injured hundreds more with an arsenal he had amassed in his hotel room.

In February 2018, President Trump issued a memo instructing the U.S. attorney general to “dedicate all available resources” to crafting “a rule banning all devices that turn legal weapons into machine guns.” The government received more than 186,000 comments on its proposed rule.

This month the U.S. Department of Justice announced it had amended regulations to clarify that bump stocks fall within the definition of machine gun under federal law and are therefore illegal. Now anyone caught with one could face prosecution.

The rule is a good step forward. Yet it could be rescinded by this or another president and is already being challenged in court.

That means Congress should pass a bill to permanently prohibit these devices, as well as similar ones like trigger cranks. And while lawmakers are on the subject of firearms, they should make some other changes, too.

They should close the so-called “gun show loophole." This gap in federal law allows gun sellers without a license to sell from their “private” collection and buyers to avoid background checks. Congress could also mandate trigger locks, ban silencers and even outlaw so-called assault weapons.

An AR-15 is not necessary for home protection or “standing your ground” in an altercation. One does not need to fire dozens of rounds of ammunition with one trigger pull to kill a deer. Weapons designed for mass murder are too often used for exactly that.

Yet Congress sits on its collective hands after elementary school children, churchgoers, concertgoers and even lawmakers are gunned down. Toddlers shoot themselves and police officers are regularly killed while our elected officials offer only thoughts and prayers.

Now, Trump has opened the door for common-sense reforms. Banning bump stocks is the most significant gun-control measure to come out of Washington in recent years.

People will not be able to legally purchase the devices. Anyone possessing one can abandon it at an office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Owners can destroy them through methods including “completely melting, shredding or crushing” them to render them incapable of being “readily restored to function," according to the Justice Department.

Of course any limitation on firearms or related devices is too much for the most extreme pro-gun crusaders. Gun Owners of America quickly filed a lawsuit against the federal government over the ban.

"These dangerous regulations can go much farther than just bump stocks," said Erich Pratt, the group's executive director, in a statement.

Yes, let's hope Congress does take this much further and offer changes in law aimed at saving lives. That's long overdue.